MacroAsia’s Infanta nickel project mine gets green light

The mining business of Lucio Tan-led MacroAsia Corp. is one step closer to reviving the Infanta Nickel Project in Palawan after securing regulatory approval.

The company informed the local bourse on Wednesday that subsidiary MacroAsia Mining Corp. (MMC) had received the Mines and Geosciences Bureau’s approval of the declaration of mining project feasibility for the Infanta nickel project.

The MGB approval, according to MacroAsia, authorizes MMC and its operator, Calmia Nickel Inc. (CNI), to proceed with the development and operations of the Infanta Nickel Project.

MMC, the project proponent of the nickel project, plans to spend $12.9 million to extract nickel ore (laterite blend, saprolite and limonite) in the mine site.

The extraction and commercial disposition of nickel and other associated mineral deposits is subject to the conditions provided by MGB, the listed firm said.

It is covered by Mineral Production Sharing Agreement No. 220-2005-IVB, which covers a 1,113.98-hectare area.

The group “believes that the nickel market will rebound and stabilize and that will push this project forward and bring the [Infanta] mineral property into full commercial production,” MMC said in a regulatory submission.

The Infanta Nickel Project has an initial estimated mine life of 10 years based on the delineated ore resources. Output is projected at 660,000 dry metric tons (DMT) of ore per year.

Although estimates assume a 10-year mine operation, the company believes there are sufficient resources to sustain operations for over 20 years.

“Hence, further exploration shall be conducted to delineate and establish these resources,” it added.

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MMC is one of MacroAsia’s businesses, with its conceptual origin traced to Infanta Mineral and Industrial Corp. (IMIC). This was established in the 1970s for geological exploration, mine development and operations.

It was activated in the second half of 2012 to become the corporate vehicle for providing outsourced exploration services to other mining companies.

In July 2021, MMC entered into a memorandum of agreement with CNI for exploration and the eventual reopening of the Infanta Nickel Project.

As part of CNI’s due diligence, confirmatory drilling activities were conducted in early November 2021.

“In response to growing demand, particularly for battery-grade nickel, MMC has initiated discussions with other nickel mine operators to begin mining operations,” MacroAsia said in its quarterly report.